National Trust really does not help itself

It was obvious to me, from her name, that English was not her first language yet she managed to get a senior position in an important department

Primrose how on earth can you make that assumption?
Just as a for instance- where do you reckon Kwasi Kwarteng was born - judging by his name?
Give up?
Born London 1975
Education: University of Cambridge (2000), Harvard University, Eton College, Trinity College, St Paul's Juniors
Never judge a book by its cover or a person’s grasp of language by their name.

I like the NT's new idea of providing seating for visitors and allowing visitors to use historic house libraries instead of merely gazing at the books. Lack of opportunity to sit down must grate with older members like me.

On the face of it, it sounds petty.
Sometimes it’s not the words spoken which offend but the way in which the speaker responded.
It seemed like he was on a mission.

There is a free offer in some of Monday newspapers to visit NT properties,they are the in the Daily Mirror Daily Express Daily Star.

Any word yet, about who is buying the Telegraph?

Talking of ‘official’ mistakes, I once picked up a leaflet about a taught MA that was being offered by our local university.

There were at least two very basic mistakes in the blurb.
The taught MA in question was for English literature!

Most of the developed countries in Europe some 4 or 5 hundred years ago went round the world exploring, sometimes conquering and colonialising. It's what people did back then, they didn't know any better.

They still don't!!
As well as invading and taking over, we're exploring space, early day so far.

I think it's what humans do.

We used to be members of the NT, stopped several years ago after witnessing the absurd 'PC' burblings of their leading lights trying to rewrite history, and/or apologise for this country's colonialist past.

Most of the developed countries in Europe some 4 or 5 hundred years ago went round the world exploring, sometimes conquering and colonialising. It's what people did back then, they didn't know any better.

Trying to apologise to visitors that a certain property had a history of family/ies that were associated with such activity is utterly pointless . . . and trying to erase that history because it makes some 'PC' pen-pusher feel better is also pointless. . . .and wildly misleading to younger visitors, whose history 'education' may be in any case lacking due to schooling failures in recent times.

It's like trying to make WW1 & 2 history go away by air-brushing it out of books, doesn't alter that it really did happen.

NB -- for those who haven't heard of it, consider a National Art Pass, we consider it much better value than NT membership now, gets you discounted or free entry into a great many venues?

SueDoku

Witzend

Must say I have sympathy for anyone pointing out a mass of spelling mistakes on an official website. Any organisation as big as the NT really should have someone reasonably literate to check.
And before anyone disagrees, yes, these things DO still matter to a good many people.

From experience, the majority of people who aren’t remotely bothered about spelling/grammar mistakes, are those who just don’t ‘see’ them, because their own SPAG is sadly lacking.

Surely the obvious solution could have presented itself to the NT high-ups? Simply thank the volunteer for pointing out the mistakes - and ask him if he would care to volunteer as a proof-reader for the website..! He'd have been thrilled (& had something to boast about to his friends) and the NT wouldn't make itself look ignorant by having misspellings on public view.!! 😁
Or is that too simple..? 🙄

Or is that too simple..? 🙄
Yes!

Besides the real truth behind this story. Which none of us know.

I personally find many of these websites and other media presentations put forward by a lot of these Charities and even business to be full of errors and factual mistakes.

They are badly written, hard to navigate, omit important facts and information Also written on the cheap and/or by well meaning Volunteers.

Whatever happened to good comprehension skills?

Dumbing down is now a way of life.

I have decided not to renew our membership this year.

We used to regularly visit Knowle Park. However, once Covid was over they still insisted on a booking even though we only wanted to walk in the parkland and not visit the house. I just don't see the logic; it's not a small parkland area or a small carpark.

Witzend

Must say I have sympathy for anyone pointing out a mass of spelling mistakes on an official website. Any organisation as big as the NT really should have someone reasonably literate to check.
And before anyone disagrees, yes, these things DO still matter to a good many people.

From experience, the majority of people who aren’t remotely bothered about spelling/grammar mistakes, are those who just don’t ‘see’ them, because their own SPAG is sadly lacking.

Surely the obvious solution could have presented itself to the NT high-ups? Simply thank the volunteer for pointing out the mistakes - and ask him if he would care to volunteer as a proof-reader for the website..! He'd have been thrilled (& had something to boast about to his friends) and the NT wouldn't make itself look ignorant by having misspellings on public view.!! 😁
Or is that too simple..? 🙄

theworriedwell

oirish not Polish. I wish my phone didn't think it knows what I mean more than I do.

I do hate having my spelling corrected by a machine that is not great , and assuming words I did not intend.

I worked for an Education Authority and every time I typed Bushfields MS changed it to Beautified.

flappergirl

He sounds like an incredibly rude man and the "Oirish" comment was racist. I doubt this was the first time he'd been a pain in the arse.

Absolutely! I know the type. Am I making assumptions about someone I've never met? Yes! I know this kind of old school bigot. If the part about cancer is true, that's really sad but looks like he left the NT of his own will. If the respondent took two months to even acknowledge the email that's rude. However, I wouldn't last long on a team with this person. I'm not saying NT is perfect by any means. Their volunteers are mostly lovely from what I can tell on our visits.

Many many years ago I started my career in police admin. For the first few years I spent a lot of time typing statements. They had to be the same as the written version so spelling mistakes bad grammar crossings out were all duly typed. Working on a major incident room, investigating a murder or other serious crime I might be doing it for 10 or 12 hours seven days a week. One day a colleagues finger suddenly went ping and started to swell like a balloon inflating. She was rushed to hospital where her finger was cut to release all the blood from where the vein had burst open, pounding on an old manual for days on end can do that.

I'm pretty impervious to spelling and grammar mistakes as long as I understand what it means. Calling me Oirish instead of Irish is a whole different matter.

Yes I was joking. But if it is true that they said 'farmers heard sheep' then there is no saving them.

Witzend

Must say I have sympathy for anyone pointing out a mass of spelling mistakes on an official website. Any organisation as big as the NT really should have someone reasonably literate to check.
And before anyone disagrees, yes, these things DO still matter to a good many people.

From experience, the majority of people who aren’t remotely bothered about spelling/grammar mistakes, are those who just don’t ‘see’ them, because their own SPAG is sadly lacking.

Spelling mistakes or making offensive remarks about someone from another country, which is worse, let me think.

I agree Witzend. I am one of those people who just doesn't 'see' mistakes as I am sadly lacking in SPAG.

Must say I have sympathy for anyone pointing out a mass of spelling mistakes on an official website. Any organisation as big as the NT really should have someone reasonably literate to check.
And before anyone disagrees, yes, these things DO still matter to a good many people.

From experience, the majority of people who aren’t remotely bothered about spelling/grammar mistakes, are those who just don’t ‘see’ them, because their own SPAG is sadly lacking.

HelterSkelter1

I think Galaxy was joking?

Thanks. It seemed odd but I obviously wasn't with it this morning. Arthritis glaring up so I'm sleep deprived drugged up and still in pain.

Well, I do think it’s one of those sensational stories made out of nothing and that he sounds quite obnoxious.

But I a,so gave to say that when I wrote to the National Trust pointing out that the food in their cafe was not labelled with allergens and that the staff had been unable to help me with the contents of what was on offer, I was totally ignored.

When I sent a second email it was passed along the line three times, until it eventually arrived with the Catering staff at the venue - who had been unable to help me because the food is ordered centrally by National Trust and they have no idea what it contains. That information is held centrally!

I do think the National Trust has become predominantly a commercial organisation operated for the benefit of the highest employees.

As I have posted on other threads "Never let the facts get in the way of a good story." The Telegraph is becoming notorious for this since it dumbed down.

So more to this than meets the eye, as suspected!

An update on my post from yesterday as Celia Richardson who is the National Trust’s Director of Communications and Fundraising and responsible for the Trust’s web and digital services has explained more on X.

Yesterday she wrote:

This story has run for 3 days. It was created by the Telegraph and was inaccurate from the start. It’s since been reproduced in many newspapers without checks, and further wrong claims have been added along the way…”

It’s wrong to say or imply that the volunteer has been ignored. There’s a long history of conversation/correspondence with various teams. I certainly responded to the January email the Telegraph cited, thanking the volunteer & saying his corrections were shared with our web team.

A Director General cannot personally respond to the thousands of messages an organisation the size of the Trust receives (although she does a lot). Editors know this. When I and others complain to the Telegraph Editor it’s usually the legal team that responds on his behalf.

Other outlets should be careful before reproducing a Telegraph story about the National Trust. The paper has often had to correct and apologise for inaccurate or false claims about the organisation and we will be following up on this one.

x.com/CeliaRichards0n/status/2007824300053504224

This is what happens when a disgruntled person contacts a national newspaper or a journalist pick up a story from local papers, doesn’t check the facts and spins the story to make an organisation look bad.

I think Galaxy was joking?